Family of character actor, who has roles in upcoming Shah Rukh Khan-starrer 'Raees' and Hrithik Roshan’s 'Kaabil', falls ill after drinking expired juice sold by careless retailer; files complaint with police, FDA

The family of a Gorai-based film actress suffered food poisoning after they unknowingly drank juice that had passed its expiration date.

Helen Fonseca, who will be seen playing two character roles in the upcoming Shah Rukh Khan-starrer 'Raees' and Hrithik Roshan’s 'Kaabil', said that on January 5, she had ordered a carton of 27 packets of B Natural jamun juice from Everfresh Supermarket in Gorai for Rs 796. The carton was delivered to her the next day.

Soon after, her husband Christopher reportedly fell ill. “He was constantly throwing up and also had high fever,” said Helen. However, at the time, she hadn’t realised that her husband’s poor health was due to the juice he had consumed. “It was only when my son Ashish and I drank the same juice, and showed similar symptoms of food poisoning that we figured something was wrong,” she added. When the family checked the carton, they realised that the product, which had been sold to them, had passed its expiration date. “The juice packet’s expiry date was December 15,” said Helen.

Helen Fonseca (right), who plays small character roles in Bollywood films, had ordered the product from a Gorai supermarket on January 5

When asked why she hadn’t checked the expiry date, she said, “We buy regularly from the store, and had not expected them to sell us an old product.”

Helen has now filed a complaint with the Borivli police station and Food and Drug Administration. Meanwhile, she also sent an email to B Natural Company. “They told me that they would look into the matter,” she said.

The bill for the juice

When contacted, Ramesh Patel of Everfresh Supermaker, said, “When the customer had placed the order, I directly informed our distributor to deliver the juice carton to her. I was not aware that they had given her an expired product.”

Speaking to mid-day, FDA commissioner Harshdeep Kamle said, “It is important that shopkeepers check the expiry date before selling the product. The shopkeeper is at fault.”